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Cascadian Culture
Cascadian culture is full of paradoxes. It has the lowest poverty rate in the world with high-quality, low-cost food, clothing, shelter, safe drinking water, education and health services available, high civic and community pride but also high taxation on both the upper and middle classes. There are no national elections except for the Common Assembly, there are no constitutional divisions between "Church & State" or clear "Separation of Powers" with the Monarch and the Dukes/Chiefs having broad executive, legislative and judiciary powers. Altruistic oligarchy best describes the political system but average Cascadians have more civil freedoms and liberties than practically anywhere. Economic policies are based on conservation vs consumerism and social welfare vs. free market capitalism. Aesthetics and quality are more prized than efficiency and cost in consumer goods- Cascadians are sensualists and want to be surrounded by what looks, feels, tastes, smells pleasurable to them. Challenge, competition, conflict, passion, humor, joy, camaderie, magick and spirituality fill daily life. Transportation Only about 10% of the population operate motor vehicles and these tend to be motorbikes, farm equipment, cargo trucks, and other utility vehicles. Cities tend to have excellent public transportation systems, most notable the Great Henges. Most towns and cities were designed with motorbikes, horses, bicycles and foot traffic in mind. There is slowly growing availability of artifaced technology including flying carpets and teleportation circles but they are still uncommon. Cascadia does have a few dirgibles/airships but no airports. Only a small proportion of Cascadian citizens except those in the capital cities with Henges regularly travel outside of their domain. Many Cascadians spend their entire lives in the township (40 sq mile zone) they were born in. Community governments tend to own trucks, heavy wagons and other utility vehicles that local citizens can draw on during times of need. Languages The official languages of Cascadia are English and Chinook jargon. Most triba lands have their own national language. Spanish in the southern domains, French in the central domains, and Russian in the northern domains are not uncommon but English and Jargon are definately prevalent and taught at home and in school in most every community. Social Values The most stereotypical Cascadian social values include: accomplishment, adventure, adaptation, challenge, civic duty, collective needs, communication, competition, concern for others, courage, creativity, cultural art and folklore, discovery, diversity, entertainment, fairness, family, fate, fitness, flexibility, freedom, friendship, generosity, heroism, honor, hospitality, humor, individual empowerment, imagination, innovation, intelligence, justice, knowledge, leadership, love, perserverance, play, pleasure, privacy, prosperity, resourcefulness, respect, responsibility-taking, ritual, sacrifice, self-determination, self-reliance, self-respect, sensuality, simplicity, sincerity, spirituality, status, subtlety, teamwork, tolerance, tradition, trust, wisdom. Values that are considered "weird" or "stupid" by many Cascadians include: abstinence, celebrity-worship, censorship, chasity, cleanlness, comercialism, conformity, consensus, contentment, continuous improvement, deatchment, determination, disposable packaging, domination, efficiency, equality,equanimity, extravagance, financial equity, global view, gravity, humility, impartiality, innocence, majority rule, maximum utilization, miserliness, modesty, nation's status in worldview, monogamy, nutrition, obedience, orderliness, ownership, passivity, perfection, piety, popular will, practicality, punctuality, purity, progress, rationality, regulation & control, religious zealotry, safety, self-depreciation, solitude, speed,standarization, stoicism,systemization, thankfulness, unity, vapid beauty, vengeance, world domination Goods & Services Furniture, dishware and many personal items are usually hand-made or artificed. Cardboard, paper,glass, and aluminum/tin are common packaging materials. Plastic is rare. Televisions, radios, computers and electronic equipment are voraciously imported from Japan by Tanaka Industries and sold at enormous markup. . The Prescott telecommunications network was created in the mid 1950s and is constantly being adapted/updated by revolutions in cybermancy.Family-owned retail & repair shops, restaurants, coffee houses, bars, clinics, hotels and groceries predominate most towns and cities. Franchises are virtually unknown; Cascadian cultural places a higher value on individuality and craftsmenship vs. American conveniency and cost. The 36 hour work week (6 hours/6 days) is customary, which most people taking Sunday off. In Metro areas many businesses stay open on everything but major holidays with four shifts a day.